THE MEDICAL ASPECTS OF GAS
WARFARE

During
WW1, Gas Warfare was first used on the Western Front at the Battle of 2nd Ypres in 1915 when
Chlorine gas was released from cylinders with devastating effect on
French Colonial Troops. This use of gas from cylinders, however, was
dependent on the prevailing wind and it was subsequently found that
chemical agents could be carried more effectively inside shells; these
could be fired at the enemy, independent of the weather.The gases used during WW1 may be classified as:

1. Lacrimators: (eye irritants and "tear gases") such as Benzylbromide.

2. Sternutators: (nasal irritants, "sneeze gases," "vomiting gases"), such as
Diphenylchlorarsine. Sternutator gases were mixed with the other, more
lethal, gases in order to interfere with the men wearing their
protective gas masks.

The Medical Manual of Chemical Warfare, published by His Majesty's Stationery
Office, 1941 Edition, based on data from 1918.A
detailed account of the general effects of gases used during war and
the appearance, physical properties, effect, treatment and
decontamination of the vesicant gases, Mustard and Lewisite. Chapters
VIII and IX have been omitted as these relate to gas warfare on
civilians and Armed Forces during World War 2.

The Medical Manual also includes an Atlas of Gas Poisoning, first published in 1918, the 3rd Edition of
March 1938 is reproduced here.

The following
descriptions of the medical effects of Gas Warfare have been extracted
from "The Medical Department of the United States in the World War",
Volume XIV.

The
Pathological Effects of Gas Warfare An account of the
general pathological findings in 107 fatal gas cases, subjected to
postmortem examination during 1918. This article describes the effect
of suffocant gases, the pathology of Mustard gas poisoning is described
separately in the next link.

Notes on the Use of Gas in
the last WarExtracted
from: "Air Raid Precautions Hand-book No. 3, 1st Edition, HMSO.
London 1937. This handbook was introduced in 1937 to advise those
concerned with Air Raid Precautions about the potential dangers of WW1
gas warfare and, in particular, the dangers of gases dropped by
aircraft. In the event war gases were not used during WW2 and no gas
was dropped by air. References to the effects of gas warfare on
civilians has therefore been edited out, but the chapter was based on a
review of war gases used during 1915 to 1918 and gives valuable
information about the usage and classification of war gases during the
Great War.